Sachsenring Moto3: KTM’s Cortese on Pole

In torrential rain during Moto3 qualifying at the eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland at the Sachsenring it was Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Sandro Cortese who produced a wet-riding master-class to grab pole position ahead of Danny Kent and Adrián Martín.

Before this afternoon’s qualifying, the Moto3 grid had been spared from the rain, meaning this was the first opportunity to test their bikes in such conditions. Heavy rain was present from the start, as all riders took to the track with immense caution in the early stages.

Cortese, who had been way down the timesheets, left it right until the end to set a stunning pole lap of 1.42’989, which saw him finish over 1.4s off his second-placed teammate Kent. Kent narrowly ousted JHK Laglisse’s Adrián Martín, who put in one of his best performances of the season to complete the front row.

Caretta Technology’s Jack Miller, known for his prowess in the rain, will head up row two, ahead of Redox-Ongetta-Centro Seta’s Jakub Kornfeil, who has been one of the most consistent performers all weekend. RW Racing GP’s Brad Binder rounds out the second row, after narrowly ousting Le Mans wet-race winner, Racing Team Germany’s Louis Rossi, into seventh.

IodaRacing Team’s Jonas Folger, who has endured a difficult season so far, will be very pleased with his eighth place in front of his home crowd, as he finished ahead of Binder’s teammate Luis Salom and Caretta Technology’s Alexis Masbou.

Championship leader, Blusens Avintia’s Maverick Viñales, failed to get to grips with the wet weather and the set-up of his bike, and will start from 24th on the grid, while Jerez wet-race winner Romano Fenati, on board his Team Italia FMI machine, looked to have a problem with his bike as he finished last in 35th place. Whilst many riders ran off track during the session, the only crasher was Freudenberg Racing Team’s wildcard Luca Gruenwald, who escaped without any serious injuries.